Christina Fay was convicted of 10 counts of animal cruelty, but her legal team says it will appeal. Fay, 59, is scheduled to be sentenced in 3rd Circuit Court within 30 days. Each charge is a Class A...

Northern Pass touts jobs creation fund

LANCASTER — The Northern Pass project has created a jobs creation fund that it said in a release Friday would increase jobs in the state’s North Country.

“The fund will be specifically aimed at increasing employment in the state’s North Country by supporting the expansion of existing businesses and attracting new businesses,” the Northern Pass release said. “The jobs created will be separate and distinct from the 1,200 jobs statewide that are expected during the construction phase of the Northern Pass project.”

A meeting to announce the fund is scheduled for 1 p.m. Monday at A.B. Logging Inc. at 653 N. Main St. in Lancaster. Presenters include Gary Long, president of New Hampshire Energy Policy Development at Northeast Utilities, Allen Bouthillier of A.B. Logging and former state Sen. John Gallus of Berlin.

Northern Pass, a collaboration between Public Service of New Hampshire’s parent company, Northeast Utilities, NStar and Hydro-Quebec, has proposed building an 180-mile-long transmission line from the Canadian border at Pittsburg to Deerfield.

The project would mostly use existing rights-of-way, but also needs to identify several miles of new corridors for the lines. The proposal, which includes the construction of transmission towers as high as 90 feet, has had opposition almost since it was announced, with opponents saying the transmission lines would hurt scenic views and lower property values.